7 Sparkling Wine Cocktails Worth Sipping

We love sipping these easy sparkling wine cocktails and you will too. Not only are they ideal for celebrating the beginning, middle or end of an evening, but they also have bubbles. Most important – they’re easy to craft and they all taste great.

Aperol Spritz at L'Arco degli Albari in Bologna Italy

Sparkling cocktails have become a sunset phenomenon all over Europe in recent years. Go to any place, praça, piazza, platz or square around 6 in the evening and you’ll observe mobs of people gathered under umbrellas with bright orange Aperol Spritzes gripped in their hands. In the distant future, people may look at old photos in befuddlement wondering: “What’s with all the orange drinks?”

But the sparkling cocktail rage has grown beyond the Aperol Spritz. Today, it’s possible to order range of spectacular sparkling libations in various colors and flavors.

And why not? Bubbles in a glass tease the eyes before they tickle the tongue. Even that happy fizzing sound pleases the senses.

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Why Do Sparkling Wine Cocktails Sparkle?

Bubbling Kir Royale Cocktail — We felt like cocktail royalty when we crafted and sipped this Kir Royale cocktail.

All that sparkles in cocktails isn’t champagne.

Sure, champagne is the most famous sparkling wine. But, make no mistake, other sparkling wines work equally well in bubbly cocktails despite their differences in geography and terroir.

In fact, when it comes to crafting sparkling wine cocktails, we’d argue that champagne isn’t necessarily the best sparkling wine to use and we’d probably win the argument. For starters, the idea of using champagne in Italian spritzes is as frivolous as it is incorrect. But this isn’t just the case with Italian cocktails.

Trentodoc maybe may not have Champagne’s pedigree but these glasses tasted just fine to us when we sipped them in **Trentino**.

Think about it. Champagne is typically expensive. If you’re going to mix bubbly wine with juice and ingredients like Campari and Cointreau, using one of the following less expensive sparkling wines simply makes more sense:

American Sparkling Wine (USA)
Asti Spumante (Italy)
Cava (Spain)
Crémant (France)
English Sparkling Wine (England)
Espumante (Portugal)
Prosecco (Italy)
Sekt (Germany)
Trentodoc (Italy)

Plus, when you use a different sparkling wine, you can save your bottle of champagne for a special occasion that warrants a splurge. Think about ringing in the new year with a champagne cocktail and you get the drift. You’ll achieve effervescence either way.

Sparkling Cocktails Around The World

Hugo Spritz at Il Bar in Milan — Drinking spritzes like this **Hugo Spritz** is the thing to do at Milan bars. Who were we to break with tradition when we visited the vibrant **Italian city**?

Spritzes have soared in popularity – none more so than the aforementioned Aperol Spritz. It’s practically impossible to find a bar in Europe that doesn’t serve the bitter orange spritz. The drink is growing in popularity in the USA too. Even TikTok has joined the spritz movement, popularizing the Negroni Sbagliato decades after the ‘Negroni with Prosecco’ was invented.

Ironically, while Italians get credit for inventing many of the most popular spritzes, the spritz concept became popular in Austria (the word spritz derives from German word spritzen) where you can still drink great spritzes in cities like Vienna and Graz. Then there’s the French who get credit for creating sparkling cocktails including the ever-popular French 75 as well as the Kir Royale.

Ideal to sip at the end of a long day or as a celebration of life, these are our favorite sparkling wine cocktails to craft at home:

7 Of The Best Sparkling Wine Cocktails

Aperol Spritz

The Aperol Spritz is the quintessential aperitivo cocktail in Italy. (Sorry Negroni fans!) Discover the story behind the classic Italian cocktail and learn how to craft one at home.

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French 75

Are you craving a sophisticated cocktail made with gin and champagne? If so, try our classic French 75 recipe with Cointreau added for balance and an extra punch. You can make it at home with just five ingredients plus ice.

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Limoncello Spritz

The Limoncello Spritz hails from Italy but you don't have to hop on a plane to sip the sweet lemony aperitivo. Instead, follow our step-by-step Limoncello Spritz recipe and sip the Italian lemon spritz at home.

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Negroni Sbagliato

The Negroni Sbagliato was allegedly invented by mistake. Fast forward 50 years and this mistaken 'Negroni with Prosecco' has become a worldwide sensation. Join the hype and craft one at home.

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Bellini

The Bellini cocktail may be the most delightful cocktail of them all. With just two ingredients (peach purée and Prosecco), it's easy to craft. It's also bubbly, sweet and peachy. Plus, it's pleasantly pink. And who doesn't like pink cocktails?

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Hugo Spritz

Don't like Italy's Aperol Spritz? Try a Hugo Spritz instead. Who knows? The refreshing Italian spritz may become your go-to aperitivo beverage.

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Kir Royale

With just three ingredients, the Kir Royale is proof that less can be more. An elegant drink that's super easy to craft at home, this Champagne cocktail is appropriately festive for any holiday or special occasion.

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Sparkling Wine FAQs

What’s the most popular sparkling wine cocktail?

Love it or hate it, the Aperol Spritz is currently the most popular sparkling cocktail.

What are the ingredients in an Aperol Spritz?

Aperol, Prosecco, Sparkling Water, Ice Cubes and Orange (for garnish)

Is it necessary to use Champagne when crafting sparkling wine cocktails?

No! You can use other sparkling wines like Cava and Prosecco to craft sparkling wine cocktails.

Thirsty For More Cocktails?

Ramos Gin Fizz - Social IMG — **Frothy Cocktails**

Bellini-Cocktail---Social-IMG — **Italian Cocktails**

Clover Club Cocktail - Social IMG — **Sour Cocktails**

About The Authors

Daryl & Mindi Hirsch

Saveur Magazine’s BEST TRAVEL BLOG award winners Daryl and Mindi Hirsch share their culinary travel experiences and recipes on their website 2foodtrippers. Since launching the site in 2012, they’ve traveled to over 40 countries in their quest to bring readers a unique taste of the world.

Disclosures

Article Updates
We update our articles regularly. Some updates are major while others are minor link changes and spelling corrections. Let us know if you see anything that needs to be updated in these article.

Funding
We purchased the ingredients and tools used to craft these cocktails.

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Original Publication Date: July 15, 2023